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Fritch: National Parks Centennial Celebration

September 3, 2016 (All day) to September 4, 2016 (All day)

National Park Service Centennial Celebration at Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument

Fritch, Texas - Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument is hosting our National Park Service Centennial Celebration on Saturday September 3rd and Sunday September 4th, 2016. On August 25th, the National Park Service turns 100 years old, and to celebrate this special anniversary Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument will be hosting a centennial special event. The event will comprise of several living historians portraying the various cultures that made up the Texas Panhandle such as the Native Americas, Spanish Conquistadores, buffalo hunters, Texas Rangers and U.S. Calvary. The event will start at 9:00 a.m., with programs throughout both days on the grounds of Alibates Visitor Center. Programs will conclude at 4:00 p.m. each evening. Come out and celebrate the first National Park Service Centennial with park staff.

In 1872, the National Park System began with a single isolated area in Northwest Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho called Yellowstone National Park. For the next 44 years, the number of National Parks and National Monuments expanded to 35 parks around the country administered by the Department of the Interior, and the need to organize the separate units to a collective group was necessary. On August 25th, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed the Organic Act which created the National Park Service as a new federal bureau in the Department of the Interior to promote and regulate these areas and all future monuments and parks.

On September 3rd and 4th, Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument and Lake Meredith National Recreation Area joins 413 park units across the country to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the National Park Service. Join park rangers, volunteers, and living historians as they take visitors back in time to the many people who lived and traveled through the Texas Panhandle. Activities include:

Living History Encampment: From 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, walk amongst groups of living historians who will demonstrate various time periods and the people who called this area home including; Native Americans, Buffalo Hunters, Texas Rangers, and many more. Camps will be set up outside of the Alibates Visitor Center for visitors to walk amongst and interact with living historians from a bygone era.

Demonstrations: Join park rangers and volunteers at the Alibates Visitor Center to watch and participate in a variety of demonstrations. Activities include: flint knapping, friction fire, atlatl dart, and pottery making. 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Demonstrations may take place throughout the day between programs.

Join park rangers in the Alibates Visitor Center to learn more about the National Park Service Centennial and people of the Texas Panhandle. Programs include:

History of the National Park Service: Learn about the men and women who dedicated their time to help preserve some of the most important areas in the United States. Saturday and Sunday at 11:00 a.m., 30 – 45 minutes.

Following the Parker Trail:

Author, Audrey Kalivoda will discuss her documentary “Following the Parker Trail”. This documentary tells the poignant story of Cynthia Ann Parker and her son Quanah Parker, the Great Comanche Chief.

Saturday and Sunday at 1:00 p.m. Alibates Movie Theater

Texas Explorers: Learn about the early Texas Explorers who braved the harsh conditions to call this area, home. Saturday and Sunday at 3:00 p.m., 30 – 45 minutes.

For additional information, please call Lake Meredith National Recreation Headquarters at 806-857-3151 or Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument at 806-857-6680.

Location

Lake Meredith National Recreation Area Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument